Organization of American States (OAS)

What is the OAS?

"The Organization of American States (OAS) brings together the nations of the Western Hemisphere to strengthen cooperation on democratic values, defend common interests and debate the major issues facing the region and the world. The OAS is the region’s principal multilateral forum for strengthening democracy, promoting human rights, and confronting shared problems such as poverty, terrorism, illegal drugs and corruption. It plays a leading role in carrying out mandates established by the hemisphere’s leaders through the Summits of the Americas".

OAS Charter

Inter-American Democratic Charter

Members

General Assembly	Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs	The Councils of the Organization
Inter-American Juridical Committee	Autonomous and/or Decentralized Organs, Agencies, Entities, and Dependencies	General Secretariat
Specialized Conferences	Specialized Organizations	Other Agencies and Entities

Organizational chart

General Assembly

Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs

The Councils of the Organization

Permanent Council

General Committee Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs Committee on Hemispheric Security Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society Participation in OAS Activities

Inter-American Council for Integral Development

Inter-American Juridical Committee

Autonomous and/or Decentralized Organs, Agencies, Entities, and Dependencies

Secretariat of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights Executive Secretariat of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Secretariat of the Administrative Tribunal of the OAS Office of the Inspector General Board of External Auditors Academic and Technical Studies Scholarship Selection Committee

General Secretariat  (Organizational chart)

Office of the Secretary General Office of the Chief of Staff of the Secretary General Department of Press Press Section Department of Planning, Control, and Evaluation Department of Legal Services Office of Protocol Summits Secretariat (at the department level)   Office of the Assistant Secretary General Office of the Chief of Staff of the Assistant Secretary General Office of the Secretariat to the General Assembly, the Meeting of Consultation, the Permanent Council, and Subsidiary Organs Department of Conferences and Meetings Conference Services Section Language Services Section Printing, Distribution, and Information Services Section Coordinating Office for the Offices and Units of the General Secretariat in the Member States Permanent Secretariat of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) (at the office level) Columbus Memorial Library (at the office level) Secretariat of the Inter-American Committee on Ports Secretariat for Political Affairs Executive Office of the Secretary for Political Affairs Administrative Support Section Department of Electoral Cooperation and Observation Department of Sustainable Democracy and Special Missions Department of State Modernization and Good Governance Executive Secretariat for Integral Development Executive Office of the Executive Secretary for Integral Development Development Policies Section Development Programs and Projects Management Section Administrative Support Section Department of Education and Culture Education Section Culture Section Department of Trade and Tourism Trade Section Tourism Section Foreign Trade Information System Section Department of Sustainable Development Department of Social Development and Employment Department of Science and Technology Secretariat of the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) (at the office level) Department of Human Development Scholarships Program Educational Portal of the Americas Leo S. Rowe Pan American Fund   Secretariat for Multidimensional Security Executive Office of the Secretary for Multidimensional Security Administrative Support Section Department for the Coordination of Policies and Programs Executive Secretariat of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) (at the department level) Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism Section Demand Reduction Section Supply Reduction and Alternative Development Section Inter-American Drug Observatory Section Educational Development and Research Section Anti-Money Laundering Section Institution-Building Section Secretariat of the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE) (at the department level) Border Control Section Airport Security Document Security and Fraud Prevention Immigrations and customs Port Security Section for Critical Infrastructure Protection Cyber Security Tourism Security Section for Legislative Assistance regarding Terrorism Section against Terrorism Funding Section for Terrorism Crisis Management Exercises Policy Formulation and Coordination Section Department of Public Security Office of Humanitarian Mine Action Public Security Policies Section Hemispheric Security Observatory Policy-making Security and the media Prison systems Gangs Concerns of small island states Section against Transnational Organized Crime Horizontal Cooperation against Transnational Organized Crime Trafficking in Persons Illicit Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, and explosives Secretariat for Administration and Finance Executive Office of the Secretary for Administration and Finance Department of Human Resources Office of the Director Compensation and Benefits Section Staff Services Section Organizational Development Section Department of Budgetary and Financial Services Office of the Director Office of the Deputy Director Section for Coordination of the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs (CAAP) of the Permanent Council Financial Operations Section Financial Reporting and Compliance Section Department of Information and Technology Services Office of the Director Infrastructure Services Section Analysis and Programming Section Telephone Services Section Information Structuring Section Office of Procurement Services Office of the Director Purchasing Section Inventory Section Travel Section Office of General Services Office of the Director Building Management and Maintenance Section Messenger, Mail, and Transportation Section Security Section Secretariat for Legal Affairs Executive Office of the Secretary for Legal Affairs Department of International Law Department of Legal Cooperation Department of Special Legal Programs Office of the Director General of the Inter-American Children's Institute (IIN) (at the office level) Secretariat for External Relations Executive Office of the Secretary for External Relations a.   Fundraising b.   Participation of civil society c.   Administrative Support Section Department of Communications and Institutional Image Radio and Television Section Website Section Américas Magazine Section Department of Relations with Observers, Multilateral Organizations, and the Host Country Relations with the Host Country Section Department of Cultural Affairs Art Museum of the Americas (at the section level

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Specialized Conferences

Specialized Organizations

Inter-American Children’s Institute - IIN Inter-American Commission of Women - CIM Inter-American Indian Institute - III Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture - IICA Pan American Health Organization - PAHO Pan American Institute of Geography and History - PAIGH

Other Agencies and Entities

Administrative Tribunal Board of External Auditors Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development Inter-American Committee against Terrorism - CICTE Inter-American Committee on Natural Disaster Reduction - CIRDN (PDF Version) Inter-American Committee on Ports Inter-American Court of Human Rights Inter-American Defense Board Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission - CICAD Inter-American Telecommunications Commission - CITEL Justice Studies Center of the Americas Pan American Development Foundation